Thailand Project Research Articles

An Evaluation of the Safe Motherhood Hospital Program

The Safe Motherhood Hospital program aims to improve maternal and child health and reduce mortality among mother and child. The program has been in place for 10 years, but there has been no impact evaluation of the program. In this research, we evaluate whether the program has an impact on maternal mortality and the cost of child delivery. The research uses Propensity Score Matching (PSM) technique that widely used for non-experimental studies. PSM has been a popular approach to estimate causal treatment effects, particularly when evaluating labour market policies and social programs. The technique is considered inexpensive and very useful for evaluating public projects in Thailand where projects have been implemented without a prior design for impact evaluation. From out analysis, we find that number of changes of director of the hospital, geographic factors, size of catchment area, socio-demographic structure of the district and hospital resources are statistically significant determinants of SMH program participation both before 2004 and 2005. Using various weighting and matching methods, we find that the SMH program has no impact on the proportion of maternal death to child delivery. The program, however, can reduce cost (i.e. length of stay for birth giving and labour cost) of participating hospitals. Given that the program does not allocate more resources to the participating hospitals, its guidelines can reduce the cost of child delivery without increasing the death rate. This could be considered as a success of the program. The findings also show that the program encourages referral. However, referral among community hospitals may be contaminated by the way the NHSO financed referral cases.

Collaborative Network Strategy: Lesson Learnt from Antibiotics Smart Use Project in Thailand

Collaborative Network Strategy: Lesson Learnt from Antibiotics Smart Use Project in Thailand

Artemisinin resistance containment project in Thailand. II: responses to mefloquine-artesunate combination therapy among falciparum malaria patients in provinces bordering Cambodia

BackgroundThe area along the Thai-Cambodian border is considered an epicenter of anti-malarial drug resistance. Recently, parasite resistance to artemisinin-based therapies has been reported in the area. The artemisinin resistance containment project was initiated in November 2008, with the aim to limit resistant parasites and eliminate malaria in this region. This study describes the response to artemisinin-based therapy among falciparum malaria patients in the area, using data from the malaria surveillance programmed under the containment project.MethodsThe study was conducted in seven provinces of Thailand along the Thai-Cambodian border. Data of Plasmodium falciparum-positive patients during January 2009 to December 2011 were obtained from the electronic malaria information system (eMIS) Web-based reporting system. All P. falciparum cases were followed for 42 days, as the routine case follow-up protocol. The demographic characteristics of the patients were described. Statistical analysis was performed to determine the cure rate of the current standard anti-malarial drug regimen--mefloquine-artesunate combination therapy (MAS). The proportion of patients who remained parasite-positive at each follow-up day was calculated. In addition, factors related to the delayed parasite clearance on day-3 post-treatment, were explored.ResultsA total of 1,709 P. falciparum-positive cases were reported during the study period. Almost 70% of falciparum cases received MAS therapy (n = 1,174). The majority of cases were males, aged between 31 and 50 years. The overall MAS cure rate was >90% over the three-year period. Almost all patients were able to clear the parasite within 7 to 14 days post-treatment. Approximately 14% of patients undergoing MAS remained parasite-positive on day-3. Delayed parasite clearance was not significantly associated with patient gender, age, or citizenship. However, delayed parasite clearance varied across the study area.ConclusionAnti-malarial drug-resistant parasites should be closely monitored in the area along the Thai-Cambodian border. Although the MAS cure rate in this study area was above 90%, an increasing trend of treatment failure has been reported in neighboring parts. Effective malaria surveillance is an important component to monitor drug-resistance in the malaria containment project.

Artemisinin resistance containment project in Thailand. (I): Implementation of electronic-based malaria information system for early case detection and individual case management in provinces along the Thai-Cambodian border

BackgroundThe Bureau of Vector-borne Diseases, Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, has implemented an electronic Malaria Information System (eMIS) as part of a strategy to contain artemisinin resistance. The attempt corresponds to the WHO initiative, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to contain anti-malarial drug resistance in Southeast Asia. The main objective of this study was to demonstrate the eMIS’ functionality and outputs after implementation for use in the Thailand artemisinin-resistance containment project.MethodsThe eMIS had been functioning since 2009 in seven Thai-Cambodian border provinces. The eMIS has covered 61 malaria posts/clinics, 27 Vector-borne Disease Units covering 12,508 hamlets at risk of malaria infections. The eMIS was designed as an evidence-based and near real-time system to capture data for early case detection, intensive case investigation, monitoring drug compliance and on/off-site tracking of malarial patients, as well as collecting data indicating potential drug resistance among patients. Data captured by the eMIS in 2008–2011 were extracted and presented.ResultsThe core functionalities of the eMIS have been utilized by malaria staff at all levels, from local operational units to ministerial management. The eMIS case detection module suggested decreasing trends during 2009–2011; the number of malaria cases detected in the project areas over the years studied were 3818, 2695, and 2566, with sero-positive rates of 1.24, 0.98, and 1.16%, respectively. The eMIS case investigation module revealed different trends in weekly Plasmodium falciparum case numbers, when classified by responsible operational unit, local and migrant status, and case-detection type. It was shown that most Thai patients were infected within their own residential district, while migrants were infected either at their working village or from across the border. The data mapped in the system suggested that P. falciparum-infected cases and potential drug-resistant cases were scattered mostly along the border villages. The mobile technology application has detected different follow-up rates, with particularly low rates among seasonal and cross-border migrants.ConclusionThe eMIS demonstrated that it could capture essential data from individual malaria cases at local operational units, while effectively being used for situation and trend analysis at upper-management levels. The system provides evidence-based information that could contribute to the control and containment of resistant parasites. Currently, the eMIS is expanding beyond the Thai-Cambodian project areas to the provinces that lie along the Thai-Myanmar border.

Burden of dengue infection in children and adults of Bang Phae district, Ratchaburi province: The DVI project in Thailand

Methods: Electronic Integrated Disease Surveillance System EIDSS) was developed to address the shortcomings of the existing ystemsparticularly in especially dangerous infections surveillance nd than expanded to address all reportable diseases. Development s based on cutting-edge expertise from the Centers for Disease ontrol and Prevention, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, nd others with more than 100 thousand man-hours of expertise ncorporated. Implementation of EIDSS normally takes from 3 to years and involves piloting of a vertical slice, customization to djust to health priorities, implementation of reports and standard ase definitions, building the backbone of the system, establishngevaluation criteria andperformancemonitoring, andevaluation f the system through test scenarios, table top exercises, legislaive reform, etc. Information security is paid close attention to ddress local legislation on security and personal data protection. omprehensive training program ranges from basics of computer nowledge to advanceddata analysis, and is provided through faceo-face, on-the-job to train-the-trainer and CBT (Computer Based raining) approaches. Early planning of system support, funding, nstitutionalizing training program is important for successful interal system sustainment. Results: EIDSS is currently deployed and sustained t more than 350 sites in the Republics of Kazahstan,Georgia,Azerbaijan,UkraineandArmeniaas a part of the ooperative Biological Engagement Program (CBEP) sponsored by he U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). EIDSS has fully eplaced paper reporting with electronic reporting inAzerbaijanith the rest of the countries on the way to fully accepting the lectronic system. Tens of thousand of cases are entered into the IDSS systems across these countries. Conclusion: Transformation of national human and veterinary isease surveillance system from paper into integrated electronic orm improved timeliness (it takes few minutes to proliferate otification through the system), increased data collection qualty through standardized formats, provided ability for integral data nalysis at different levels of the national system.

Evaluating Public Participation Process in Development Projects in Thailand: A Case Study of the Hin Krut Power Plant Project

Problem statement: Public participation has become a vital element of environmental decision-making. Although public participation has grown tremendously in Thailand due to a rising pressure from the public, this practice often fails to solve environmental problems and conflicts. The re is a keen for a systematic evaluation of the public participation process to investigate whether the participation process is effective and what works o r does not work in this respect. Approach: This study evaluates the effectiveness of the public par ticipation process of the Hin Krut power plant proj ect through an evaluation model developed from relevant literatures. Results: It was found that the public participation process of the case study was not com pletely effective when tested against the evaluatio n criteria. The affected people had no chance to pres ent any comments at the very beginning. The public participation process started too late, after a dec ision had been made and conflicts among stakeholders already occurred. Conclusion: The public participation process is not yet proper ly established in the Thai context. There is an urgent need to find a wor king model and conditions of public participation which can assist in resolving environmental problem s. Finally, a set of recommendations for improving public participation process are suggeste d.

Sustainable Development With First CDM Project in Thailand

This article, written by Senior Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 146681, ’Sustainable Development With First CDM Project in Thailand E&P,’ by Chiratthakan Getwech and Lawan Pornsakulsakdi, PTT Exploration and Production plc, prepared for the 2011 SPE Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition, Jakarta, 20-22 September. The paper has not been peer reviewed. A clean-development-mechanism (CDM) project takes aim at recovering and then using associated gas from the oil wells of Sao Thian-A field in Sukhothai Province, Thailand. Without a CDM project, this associated gas would continue to be flared. The CDM project involved the installation of a gas-treatment system to filter out hydrocarbon droplets from the associated gas before its internal use and sale to an external facility. Introduction The CDM project is one of three flexible mechanisms that allow Annex-I Parties* to implement projects that reduce emissions or increase removals by sinks in the territories of non-Annex-I Parties. The carbon credits generated by CDM projects are “certified emission reductions” (CERs) that can be claimed by the project investor. Thailand is classified as a non-Annex-I Party and is not obligated to meet any emission-reduction targets. Instead, Thailand is eligible to participate in the CDM project as a host country, and possibly attract environmentally friendly investment from governments and businesses of developed countries. Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use aiming to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that such needs can be fulfilled now and in the future. There is interdependence among the three concepts of sustainability: environment, economics, and socio-culture. On the basis of this approach, sustainable development can occur only where the environment, the economy, and the social needs meet. The Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (a public organization), or TGO, is an autonomous governmental organization with the specific purpose of reducing greenhouse-gas emission, reviewing CDM projects for approval, and performing its role as the Designated National CDM Authority in Thailand. CDM-project development in Thailand must function in accordance with TGO guidelines, as well as with its sustainable-development criteria. *According to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, countries are divided into two main groups: those that are listed in the Annex I, known as Annex-I Parties, and those that are not, known as non-Annex-I Parties. The Annex-I Parties are industrialized countries that are obligated to respond to climate change by lowering their greenhouse-gas emissions to an average of approximately 5.2% below their 1990 levels over the 2008–2012 period.

Noise around Suvarnabhumi Airport

The noise levels in the vicinity of the Suvarnabhumi Airport (NBIA) were reported by the relevant authorities, including the noise levels before and after the opening of it since 2006. The overview of noise around NBIA will be illustrated in this paper. Meanwhile, the new guidelines on the airport noise management are under the consideration and development by the Pollution Control Department in corporation with other relevant agencies in compatible with the international recommendations on ISO 20906:2009, ISO 1996-1:2003, and ISO1996-2:2007. It should be into active within the next two years for applying to the airport projects in Thailand.

Khonkaen One Stop Services: a Thai Triple-Helix-based Project in Taking University Expertise to Serve Provincial ICT Strategies and Promote Software Industry

This article aims to look into a successful Triple-Helix based project in Thailand, namely “Khonkaen One Stop Services”. The project is under the coordination between Thai Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA), Faculty of Informatics, Mahasarakham University, Khonkaen provincial authority and several small and medium software companies. The initiative has started from the mission of SIPA to promote software industry in the northeastern of Thailand together with the mission of the Khonkaen provincial authority to extend the Information Communication Technology (ICT) usage to enhance citizen services and provincial administration tasks. To accomplish the objectives, Khonkaen province and SIPA have agreed to employ an ICT expert team from Faculty of Informatics Mahasarakham University to analyze and develop the core system. The know-how is then transferred to the regional software companies to learn and get extensive jobs from the local government sector. By applying the Triple Helix model of university-industry-government relations on the project, University, industry, government can coordinate successfully and fulfill their missions.

CO2 mitigation model of future power plants with integrated carbon capture and storage in Thailand

Thailand currently relies on natural gas, coal, and oil for electricity production. Natural gas and oil fields are the plentiful domestic energy resources in the Gulf of Thailand, but are projected to be available only in the next decade. Using domestic natural gas would reduce national energy security. Due to its low price, coal will dominate in electricity generation in Thailand. However, more utilization of coal results in increasing CO2 emissions. To comply with the low-carbon society policy of the Royal Thai Government, carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) for the future committed power plants in Thailand is introduced and analysed using the market allocation model, a least-cost energy planning tool. In this study, CO2 mitigation scenarios include integrated CCS to new gas- and coal-based power plants, nuclear power and renewable-based power plants and these were introduced as mitigation options. In energy-demand forecasting, share of coal-based plants is projected to increase from 0.72% in 2006 to 14.97% in 2030, while the share of gas-based plants decreases from 79.24 to 53.25% in the same period. This study also presents possible gas and oil fields for storing CO2 in the deep saline aquifer in the Gulf of Thailand. Results show the optimal CO2 incremental cost and revenue when applied with clean development mechanism and feed-in-tariff for renewable energy and the CCS project in Thailand.

Prediction of Unconfined Compressive Strength of Soil–Cement at 7 Days

Unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of cement stabilized bases was collected from a number of highway construction projects in Thailand. Results from the statistical analysis indicated that the most important factors affecting the UCS were the CBR and the water to cement ratio. The UCS was however independent on the dry density. A statistical model was developed in the study to predict the UCS of cement stabilized bases. A model was developed based on the following criteria: (1) the dry density of the sample shall be greater than 95 percent of the maximum dry density based on the modified Proctor compaction, (2) samples shall be soaked for at least 2 h prior to testing, and (3) the CBR shall be measured at 0.1 inch (2.5 mm) penetration.

Stakeholder preferences towards the sustainable development of CDM projects: Lessons from biomass (rice husk) CDM project in Thailand

This research applies both quantitative and qualitative methods to investigate stakeholder preferences towards sustainable development (SD) priorities in Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects. The CDM's contribution to SD is explored in the context of a biomass (rice husk) case study conducted in Thailand. Quantitative analysis ranks increasing the usage of renewable energy as the highest priority, followed by employment and technology transfer. Air pollution (dust) is ranked as the most important problem. Preference weights expressed by experts and local resident are statistically different in the cases of: employment generation; emission reductions; dust; waste disposal; and noise. Qualitative results, suggest that rice husk CDM projects contribute significantly to SD in terms of employment generation, an increase in usage of renewable energy, and transfer of knowledge. However, rice husk biomass projects create a potential negative impact on air quality. In order to ensure the environmental sustainability of CDM projects, stakeholders suggest that Thailand should cancel an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) exemption for CDM projects with an installed capacity below 10 MW and apply it to all CDM projects.

Company’s Competitiveness Enhancement for Thai Agribusiness through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)

Ratification to the Kyoto Protocol allows Thailand to voluntarily participate in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). CDM not only promotes environmental integrity but also offers business sustainability, which will be then able to enhance company’s competiveness. Due to these enthusiastic impressions, number of CDM registered projects in Thailand has been increased from 5 to 40 projects between 2005 and 2010, respectively. Several business sectors in Thailand have been moving their position toward to CDM including agribusiness sectors namely sugar, tapioca, rice, agrofuel, livestock and forestry. This study carries out an in-depth analysis on the correlations between CDM mechanism and agribusinesses in Thailand through the competitiveness indicator with a view to affirm that the level of competitiveness in Thailand agribusinesses can be enhanced through the CDM scheme. Productivity improvements in term of technology and project financial before and after the CDM application are served as competiveness indicators. The study concludes that CDM offers opportunity for company to move toward a better technology with a better operation performance and greenhouse gas reduction. The improvement of productivity level is found through an anticipated revenue stream from carbon credits which delivered project’s rate of return well above company’s hurdle rate of approximately 10-16% for 4 types of agribusinesses i.e. palm oil, rice mill, ethanol and tapioca. Despite abovementioned benefits,, CDM still faces a lot of challenges including a requirement on a substantial amount of investment which requires for starting the CDM process, risk of local and international approvals, deliverable risk, and uncertainty on CDM processing time and the future of CDM after the first commitment period, 2012. These challenges, however, can be overcome by well-disciplined preparation and better understanding on CDM process and requirements.

The Achievement on Village and Urban Community Fund Project in Thailand

The Achievement on Village and Urban Community Fund Project in Thailand

WINDS (KIZUNA)-based Collaborative e-Learning Project in Thailand, Malaysia and Japan

WINDS (KIZUNA)-based Collaborative e-Learning Project in Thailand, Malaysia and Japan

Factors associated with death among HIV‐uninfected TB patients in Thailand, 2004–2006

In countries with both TB and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemics, HIV is known to be the most powerful risk factor for death during tuberculosis (TB) treatment. Few recent studies have evaluated risk factors for death among HIV-uninfected TB patients in these countries. We analysed data from a multi-province demonstration project in Thailand to answer this question. We prospectively collected data from HIV-uninfected TB patients treated for TB in four provinces and the national infectious diseases hospital in Thailand from 2004-2006. Standard WHO definitions were used to classify treatment outcomes. We used log-binomial multivariate regression to calculate adjusted relative risk (aRR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for factors associated with death. Of 5318 cases, 441 (8%) died during TB treatment. The mean age was 47 years (range 8 months-97 years). Multidrug-resistant (MDR)-TB was diagnosed in 62 (1%). In multivariate analysis, patients older than 44 years were significantly more likely to die than patients aged 15-44 years [age 45-64, aRR 2.9 (CI 2.2-3.8)] [age > 64 years, aRR 5.0 (CI 3.9-6.6)]. Other independent risk factors for death included Thai nationality [aRR 3.9 (CI 1.6-9.5)], MDR-TB [aRR 2.8 (CI 1.7-4.8)], not being married [aRR 1.4 (CI 1.2-1.7)], and living in Chiang Rai province [aRR 2.7 (CI 1.7-4.4)]. The death rate was high among HIV-uninfected TB patients in Thailand. Efforts to improve TB diagnosis and treatment in the elderly and to improve MDR-TB treatment may help reduce mortality.

Occurrence of aflatoxin M1 in pasteurized milk of the School Milk Project in Thailand.

Concentrations of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) were determined in 150 pasteurized milk samples from the School Milk Project in Thailand. Milk samples were collected from 50 schools in the Central region of Thailand in three seasons: summer (May to June 2006), the rainy season (August to September 2006), and winter (December 2006 to January 2007). AFM1 was isolated by using an immunoaffinity column and quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography. All of the 150 pasteurized milk samples were contaminated with AFM1, and the concentrations were within the U.S. regulatory limit of 0.5 microg/liter. The highest concentration of AFM1 found in school milk samples was 0.114 microg/liter. The mean concentration of AFM1 in milk samples collected in winter was significantly higher than the mean concentrations found in the rainy season and summer. Further monitoring of school milk to evaluate the status of contamination of AFM1 is necessary, with a special emphasis on samples collected in the rainy season and winter. Thailand is one of several countries that have no regulatory limits for AFM1 in milk and milk products. The results of this study suggest that safety limits for AFM1 are needed for regulating and ensuring the quality of milk and milk products in Thailand.

環境援助事業と住民参加に関する一考察 ―タイ・環境保全基金支援事業から―

環境援助事業と住民参加に関する一考察 ―タイ・環境保全基金支援事業から―

Beyond the ‘iron triangle’: Stakeholder perception of key performance indicators (KPIs) for large-scale public sector development projects

Performance measurement criteria vary from project to project. Despite much work on the subject, there is no commonly agreed framework of performance measurement on mega projects. To bridge this gap, this research targets to investigate the perception of the key performance indicators (KPIs) in the context of a large construction project in Thailand. The study explores the significance of key performance indicators in perspective of various construction stakeholders (client, consultants, and contractors). Findings indicate that the traditional measures of the iron triangle (on-time, under-budget and according to specifications) are no more applicable to measuring performance on large public sector development projects. Other performance indicators such as safety, efficient use of resources, effectiveness, satisfaction of stakeholders, and reduced conflicts and disputes are increasingly becoming important. This implies that the Thai construction industry is slowly departing from the traditional quantitative performance measurement to a rather mix of both quantitative and qualitative performance measurement on large-scale public sector development projects.

Ineffective leadership

PurposeA large portion of the extant literature on leadership focuses only on the positive traits of leaders. However, the so‐called “dark side of leadership”, or negative personal traits of leaders, has received relatively less attention. Also, in practice, leadership is mostly evaluated in terms of the positive traits and strengths of leaders, even though certain organizational factors and followers' characteristics significantly contribute to the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of leaders. This paper aims to examine the negative personal attributes and organizational factors – termed “organizational neutralizers” – that impede the leadership effectiveness of project managers on construction projects.Design/methodology/approachTo achieve the research objectives, questionnaire surveys and interviews are conducted on a large construction project in Thailand. In total, 78 questionnaires and 35 interviews are conducted with project managers, deputy project managers, and other senior managers working for various stakeholders involved in the construction of the Second Bangkok International Airport (SBIA).FindingsFindings reveal that wrongful use of power, poor communication, and low experience are the leading negative personal factors which make project leaders appear incompetent and ineffective in the workplace. Also, organizational factors that hinder the leadership performance of project managers include: lack of resources, lack of planning and control, lack of synergy between performance and goals, and lack of higher management support.Practical implicationsPractical implications are discussed for the selection and development of project managers and project staff, personnel performance management, and improvements in organizational culture, strategy, and approach towards project management.Original/valueThe research findings presented here show that certain negative attributes of leaders and organizational factors can impede leadership effectiveness and performance. A number of possible directions are proposed in which future research can be directed to explore what hinders project managers from performing their leadership roles more effectively in construction projects.